It is SO cold here, today. I am sitting here cuddled up by the computer with my cup of herbal tea. And I'm dreaming about all the teas I could make after this! There is something so comforting about a cup of tea, or in my case, a Mason jar full! There's just nothing like watching the delicate herbs unfurl and grow, spreading their healing compounds into the hot water. The scent of infusing tea is nothing short of amazing, especially for those spicy kinds of teas, like Chai! Since it's gift-giving time, I thought I'd share some of my favorite tea blends and tea accessories with you!

One of my tea blends....it's so fun blending and making herbal tea! Good for you and delicious at the same time?! What a great combo!

If you want to add your own personal touch, it's easy to make your own tea blends! Here are a few of my recipes!

Tea Accessories You Just Gotta Have

Infusing Cups and Toys

This heavy duty tea infuser glass is not only beautiful, but it works amazingly well. The removable infuser is stainless steel, and its mesh is fine enough so that your tea always turns out beautifully clear. I love mine like crazy! Giving this as a gift along with a prettily packaged tea blend is a great idea!

This Zenzenze Tea infuser is quite simple, but elegant. Much more sophisticated than one of those old tea balls. The reason I like this one is because it has its own removable lid that can double as a holder for the finished, drained leaves. Nice!

Isn't this the cutest set? When I'm choosing tea infusing accessories, I always look for a good-sized infuser part because the plant leaves of the tea need to have plenty of room to open up!

We're going to get into larger tea infusers now! If, like me, you like to make a lot of tea at a time, then these options are great!

This is the best little Japanese glass teapot. It's more roomy than it appears, keeps your tea very hot, and has a very good-size glass infuser.

One thing I love is that these are portable glass tea infusers. I have, like 5 of them now! The reason I really love them is because they hold 2-3 cups of tea, the leaves can stay right inside the water for hours, and it stays pretty hot, too. I take two of them to work with me every day. They are also very attractive! These really make great gifts, especially if presented with some favorite tea!

Finally, I think everyone needs an actual tea kettle that boils a good quantity of water. If you like infusing your tea in Mason Jars, or other larger containers like I do, then a tea kettle is something you just must have! Here is a tea kettle I have had for years, and it's great! There are other, much more beautiful tea kettles out there, too.

Single Teas, Organic & High Quality

Note: I buy the vast majority of my teas, singles & blends, from Starwest Botanicals. They have a huge selection, and the quality is excellent. Their prices are also extremely competitive in my experience comparing over the years.

Green Tea

Chunmee Green Organic Tea:

Chunmee Green Tea has is lovingly curled into the shape of little eyebrows. That's where it gets its name: it is said to look like the beautiful curve of a woman's eyebrow. This green tea has a delicate flavor, and is, like all green and black teas, full of antioxidants.

Gunpowder Green Organic:

Gunpowder Green Tea: This tea has been rolled into tight little balls. It has a stronger taste than the Chunmee above, and its delicious! It has one of the longest shelf lives of tea because of how its rolled.

Black Tea

Basic China Black Tea Organic (BOP):

This is just an over all great basic Black tea. It's the one I use when blending teas, and I want a bit of extra caffeine to jazz things up!

Lychee Black Tea Organic

Delicious! This Lychee Black Tea is an aromatic black tea that is spiced with the essence of lychee fruit.

Yerba Mate

I love Yerba Mate. Grown in the jungles of the South America, it's thought to be a super food. It gives you a great boost of energy without the coffee crash....AND it tastes great, strong and kind of roasty.

Tea Blends

I make most of my own tea blends, but you can purchase freshly made loose leaf blends for health and taste reasons. If I don't feel l like blending my own, here are a few blends I've tried and trusted over the years:

Energy Adjustment Tea (Organic)

This blend contains green Hyson green tea with eleuthero and ginkgo, along with other herbal powerhouses that support your adrenal glands. If you are overstressed by the holidays, have not been sleeping enough, or just drink too much coffee, it's likely your adrenal glands are weakened. This tea helps your body deal with stress and manage your energy. You can find it at Starwest Botanicals.

Memory Tea

I love this tea! Herbs that enhance your memory and brain power such as gotu kola and gingko along with tasty herbs such as hibiscus, bilberry (related to blue berry), and ginger root make this a lovely tonic tea for your mind. This is a Starwest Botanicals special blend.

Chai Teas

I just love a warm, spicy cup of Chai tea. There are literally thousands of different recipes for chai, and Starwest has several. My favorite one from Starwest is the Green Tea Chai! If you want to try blending your own and making a just absolutely beautiful tea, try my Rosy Chocolate Chai. in this article.

Razzlemint Tea

Made with herbs tasting of mints, citrus, and spice, this is just a delicious warm tea for the cool months. You can find LOTS of other great blends from Starwest, including relaxing blends and blends to help with specific health conditions.

Blooming Teas:

These are the most GORGEOUS and fun teas to watch! You do need to have a glass tea pot (see above) so you can see the ball unfurl into a lovely tea "flower." Blooming teas are not only beautiful, they are delicious and full of health benefits! These make an EXCEPTIONALLY lovely tea gift. Here are a few to take a look at:

Splendid Oolong Flowering Tea

Flowering Gift Set with Pot and Flowers:

This is the most cool set I've seen! I don't have it because I have the parts separately, but if you are buying a great gift for a tea lover, this would probably be IT. It comes with a glass tea pot and 12 flowering tea balls. Just beautiful!

Other Blends:

I tend to not use teas with flavorings (Teavana, anyone?), but if you like that kind of tea and artificial flavors, here are two that are delicious---and I won't blame you for drinking them!

Tea Storage Containers

I have to admit, I'm not fancy when storing my herbs or tea. Generally, I just use a glass jar with a tight lid, and label it so I know what's inside. BUT...if you are giving tea as a gift, it might be nice to include a tea storage container that's pretty cool! Here are a couple of good ones:

These tea storage tins are nice. I've used them for gift giving of teas before, and they are pretty nice!

I love copper, and this storage canister is one I would love sitting on my counter for my mainly used tea.

Finally, crockery. Just look for a cool lidded pottery on the small side. I always look at etsy.com for vintage items like this. But if you don't want to search a lot, then here is one that looks quite nice! It's a black clay farmhouse style canister...perfect for tea!

I hope you've enjoyed this little tea guide, and I hope it's a bit helpful to you! Personally, drinking tea is a privilege and an art, and when you combine that action with great accessories, it's a WIN-WIN! :-) Happy shopping!

**This post does contain affiliate links, and that means that if you click on an item and make a purchase, I will make a small commission at no extra charge to you! Thank you so much for supporting Healing Harvest Homestead and my shameful blogging habit!

Hi. I'm Heidi. I am a mid-life homesteader/teacher-turned-blogger! We live off-grid on less than an acre with lots of animals... READ MORE....

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